The Minister of Agriculture, Animal Industry & Fisheries, Frank Tumwebaze, presenting a statement on the outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease in the cattle corridor and the resultant quarantine, reveals that 44 million animals require vaccination against the disease.   

To meet this need, the minister said the country requires an annual vaccine stock of 88 million doses for the bi-annual vaccination requirement at a cost of $2 per dose translating into $176 million.

To bridge the gap, the agriculture ministry, according to Tumwebaze is now seeking support for a supplementary budget to procure another 10 million doses to cover all the affected and high-risk districts. 

We need to support and equip district veterinary officials with disease surveillance tools, Tumwebaze said. Adding: “In the next one or two months, we expect to receive and dispatch 2.3m doses of the vaccine to these affected and susceptible districts for ring vaccination scale-up.”

The minister said that scientists and economists have estimated the economic cost of FMD to a farmer per unit of livestock to be 20 per infection. The cost can be higher with repeated infections, he noted.

Affected districts named 

There are 36 districts currently affected and under quarantine following the outbreak of Foot and Mouth Disease. These include Budaka, Bukedea, Bukomansimbi, Bunyangabu, Butaleja, Fortportal City, Gomba & lbanda. 

Others are Isingiro, Kabarole, Kasanda, Kayunga, Kazo, Kiboga, Kibuku, Kiruhura, Kumi, Kyankwanzi, Kyegegwa, Kyotera, Luuka, Lwengo, Lyantonde, Mbarara, Mbarara City, Mityrana, Mpigi, Mubende, Nakaseke, Nakasongola, Namisindwa, Ngora, Ntungamo, Rakai, Rwampara and Sembabule.

The minister said all districts neighboring the aforementioned districts are at high risk, under strict surveillance, and the authorities are advised to remain vigilant.

“I appeal to the district veterinary authorities to ensure strict disease surveillance, timely reporting and ensure transparency and accountability in the administration of the government-provided vaccines,” he said. 

MPs protest total quarantine

Several MPs from the cattle corridor protested the total quarantine imposed on 32 districts, to contain the spread of the disease across the country.

Dan Kimosho, the MP for Kazo County, warned that imposing a total quarantine around the cattle corridor is going to affect the livelihoods of people who depend on animal sales to pay school fees for their children and service the loans they secured.

“The Ministry of Agriculture has been on record that they can’t afford to vaccinate animals as is required from the Government coffers, and now, they have issued a circular for total quarantine on animals and animal products. 

We are talking about children going back to school, we are talking about people with loans that they need to clear, and you are telling them that you are issuing total quarantine,” said Kimosho.

Nyabushozi County MP, Wilson Kajwengye, says ring vaccination is a lazy policy that comes after the outbreak of the disease. “This quarantine is not helping anything. You vaccinate to prevent the outbreak of the disease. We are now looking at treatment and not inoculation,” he said.

UPDF Representative, Maj Gen Sam Kavuma, wondered what would happen with the farmers who are already quarantined as the government goes through the process for supplementary budget for acquisition of vaccines. “What happens now as people cannot sell their cows or milk?” he asked. 

Kabula County MP, Enosi Asiimwe noted that the challenge with the vaccine is it takes 6 months; after that, it requires boosting. “Why don’t we channel more money into making the vaccine locally so we deal with the problem for good?” he also asked.

Gomba District Woman MP, Sylvia Nayebale warned that there are lots of fake vaccines on the markets yet the ministry is seated back as the farmers continue to buy these fake vaccines.

The Deputy Speaker, who chaired the plenary, wondered if these ‘vaccines are reaching the small persons?’ “If someone has 1000 cows, why can’t they buy their vaccines and we support the small-scale farmers? We can say someone with 50 or fewer cows; let us say maybe we support those.”

Quarantines are unpopular but necessary 

Tumwebaze in defense said quarantines are unpopular and an inconvenience to people’s livelihoods but yet again inevitable as temporary measures to control further spread to alarming and uncontrollable epidemic levels. 

“If the stakeholders can be disciplined and comply with the quarantine protocols, the disease will resolve/be contained in a very short time as we also wait for the vaccines,” he said.

Tumwebaze explained that countries that have eradicated the disease don’t allow trade with affected countries or those that control the disease by vaccination. The disease causes economic losses to the farmers & the country due to disruption in animal production, he stated.

Tayebwa referred the debate on the statement on Foot and Mouth Disease to next week to allow the ministry to come with the position from Cabinet on measures being taken.